Guiness Record Holder Dies While Performing Stunt

A daredevil Indian who held the Guinness World Record for covering the longest distance on a zip-line while hanging by his hair has died while performing a stunt

A stuntman who held the Guinness World Record for covering the longest distance on a zip wire hanging by a tuft of his hair met a tragic end in West Bengal Sunday while trying to cross the Teesta river, police said.

Image Courtesy: REUTERS/Stinger

Home Guard Sailendra Nath Roy, 49, had tied a tuft of his hair to a 600-foot long zip wire about 70 feet above the river's water level in an attempt to create a new world record in Siliguri in Darjeeling district.

After attaching his shoulder-length hair to a pulley on the zip-line, Roy had completed about 50 percent of the crossing, which started from a point close to the Sevak Coronation Bridge, when his pony-tail became entangled and he found himself unable to move, an AFP photographer at the scene said. He died while struggling to free himself as helpless spectators looked on.

The spectators, who had gathered to see the stunt, initially cheered him on when he got stuck, but screamed in horror when they saw Roy making desperate but futile attempts to free himself and move forward."Roy tried frantically to get hold of a second rope to reach the finishing point," senior local police officer K. Jayaraman told AFP

A little later he became motionless but remained hanging for about 45 minutes before being brought down, police said. No ambulance or a doctor was present during the performance, which was watched by his family.

Roy, who had taken the day off work to perform, was rushed to hospital in Siliguri, 450 kilometres away, where doctors pronounced him dead. The doctors said he died due to a cardiac arrest."Preliminary investigations suggest that Roy suffered an heart attack caused by a nervous breakdown after remaining suspended for several minutes," said B.R. Satpathi who heads West Bengal state's medical services. The results of a post-mortem are expected later

Siliguri Police Commissioner K. Jayaraman said Roy was a home guard who was on leave Sunday.

"We are conducting a post-mortem examination to ascertain how he died," Jayaraman said.

Roy ,who was wearing a life-jacket over his shirt and carrying the Indian flag, achieved the Guinness World Record for covering the farthest distance - 82.5 metres - on a zip wire using a tuft of his hair March 1, 2011, at Neemrana Fort Palace in Rajasthan.

Last year, he earned kudos by dragging a 40-tonne train along a track using his pony tail.

He used a chain tied to his hair to pull the engine and four coaches of the heritage Darjeeling Himalayan Railway - also called the toy train - up to a distance of 8.2 feet.

Roy's younger brother Benoy, who was witnessing his brother's stunt for the first time, told AFP: "We were proud of his bravery. He was sure to win but destiny has taken his life and the most beloved member of our family as well."